Cargo or dunnage air bags are used in the cargo shipment or transportation industry as a means for readily and easily securing or bracing cargo within the holds of, for example, railroad cars, ships, airplanes, truck trailers, and the like. Cargo air bags are fabricated from an inflatable bladder that is enclosed within an outer bag or envelope. The outer bag can be made from a variety of materials, for example, a plurality of paper plies or a woven or non-woven polymer, such as polyester and the like.
The air bags are sized to be readily inserted into voids between spaced loads, or between a load and a side or end wall of the cargo container or hold. The bag is subsequently inflated to expand and fill the void. The bag engages the adjacent cargo loads or the cargo load and container wall to secure the cargo loads against undesirable movement during transit.
To achieve the inflation of the cargo or dunnage air bags to a predetermined pressurized level, the air bags are provided with an inflation valve assembly that permits compressed or pressurized air to be introduced into the interior portion of the inflatable bladder. Typically, the inflation valve assembly has a tubular valve body with a sealing flange portion integral with the body. The sealing flange is welded or heat-sealed to an interior wall of the inflatable bladder to form an air-tight seal with the bladder. The tubular valve body projects outwardly from a plane or surface of the air bag to be readily accessible for communication with a suitable gas inflation nozzle or assembly, by which compressed or pressurized gas is introduced to fill the inflatable bladder. However, in this configuration, the valve is susceptible to contact, damage, and in some instances, being sheared from the air bag. This can result in deflation of the air bag and, as such, may allow undesired movement of the cargo.
Accordingly, there is a need for a device or mechanism to protect the cargo air bag valve from damage. Desirably, the device or mechanism would not adversely impact the ability to access the valve to inflate the air bag. Also desirably, the device or mechanism could be readily applied, installed, or coupled to a variety of known valves.